In a bold step for spacecraft servicing, NASA has awarded Katalyst Space Technologies of Flagstaff, Arizona, a $30 million contract to raise the orbit of the agency’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory. The robotic servicing mission, planned for spring 2026, will be the first attempt by a commercial spacecraft to capture and reposition a government-owned satellite that was never designed for in-orbit servicing.
NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, shown in this artist’s concept, orbits Earth as it studies the ever-changing universe.
Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab
Launched in 2004, Swift has been central to NASA’s study of gamma-ray bursts — the universe’s most powerful explosions — while also contributing to discoveries about black holes, stellar flares, comets, and even lightning on Earth. But its low Earth orbit has been steadily decaying, a process worsened by heightened solar activity that increases atmospheric drag. Without intervention, Swift would eventually reenter the atmosphere and burn up.
Rather than end the mission, NASA is seizing the opportunity to demonstrate a new capability. “This industry collaboration to boost Swift’s orbit is just one of many ways NASA works for the nation every day,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. “By moving quickly to pursue innovative commercial solutions, we’re strengthening American space leadership and demonstrating rapid-response capabilities essential for our future in space.”
If successful, the orbit boost would extend Swift’s science lifetime and showcase a technology that could benefit many other satellites facing orbital decay. “We are in a race against time,” said Shawn Domagal-Goldman, acting director of NASA’s Astrophysics Division. “But leveraging commercial technologies already in development makes this approach more affordable than replacing Swift with a new mission, while broadening the use of servicing to an entirely new class of spacecraft.”
The collaboration was enabled through NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, part of “America’s Seed Fund,” which helps startups and small companies scale technologies for both government and commercial use. Katalyst’s award under the program’s Phase III allows NASA to fast-track the mission on a shortened development timeline.
“Orbital decay is a natural challenge, but one with solutions that can strengthen our space economy and scientific reach,” said Clayton Turner, associate administrator of NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. “By working with industry, we’re not only extending Swift’s mission but also opening doors for future servicing missions that can save costs and advance U.S. capabilities in space.”
Swift is managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, with contributions from Penn State, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Northrop Grumman, and international partners in the United Kingdom and Italy. The observatory has acted as a “dispatcher” for NASA’s astrophysics fleet, alerting other telescopes to cosmic events that require rapid response.
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